Description
The first of the Gnossiennes, written around 1890. The title appears to be Satie's own coinage and its derivation is uncertain — Knossos, the ancient city of Crete, and gnosis, knowledge, are both proposed. If the Gymnopédies are a motionless landscape, this is something shadier, with a modal melody that suggests the East.
The score has neither bar lines nor a time signature. In their place Satie scatters peculiar instructions — "very shiny," "questioningly," "from the tip of the thought" — leaving interpretation to the player. The left hand repeats a fixed accompaniment figure while the right sings a melody drawn from a scale containing an augmented second.
There is almost nothing technically difficult here, and a beginner can follow the notes. What is hard is the handling of time. No bar lines means deciding for yourself where the music is divided. Keep the left hand steady first, then experiment with how far to stretch the melody and where to leave space. The same page yields a different piece from every player.
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Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
What this piece teaches
Gnossienne No. 1. Satie's score has neither bar lines nor a time signature, leaving the player to decide where the music divides. The left hand repeats one accompaniment figure while the right sings a melody on an eastern-sounding scale with an augmented second.
How to practise it
- The score view here is generated from the MIDI, so it has bar lines for convenience. Knowing the original has none, look for your own divisions.
- Get the left-hand accompaniment steady first, then experiment with how far to stretch the melody and where to leave space.
- Find where the augmented second - a gap of three semitones - falls on the keyboard in the falling notes, and it will not catch you out.
About the Composer
Erik Satie (1866-1925)
Erik Satie was a French composer from Honfleur who worked in Montmartre's cabarets while pursuing a highly individual musical aesthetic. Known for spare, understated music and whimsically titled works, he later influenced minimalist and ambient music. This site includes the Gymnopédies and Gnossiennes, along with "Danse maigre."
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